BASICS
FULL NAME: trenton rutherford st. james
CREDITED AS: trenton st. james
OCCUPATION: actor, director, producer, writer
AIM & JOURNAL: trentourage & enton
BIRTHDATE & AGE: october 31 1969; 41
SEXUALITY: homosexual
FAMILY: amelia st. james (mother), joshua baxter (father)
CURRENT RESIDENCE: los angeles, california

BIOGRAPHY
from a young age it was known that trenton st. james loved the camera. his mother was a makeup artist in the 1970s and trenton was often found hiding under her makeup counter waiting for actors and actress to sit in her chair just so he could jump out and show off the new thing he had learned. trenton grew up around writers, actors and directors, the whole world behind the camera fascinated him just as much as life in front of it.

joshua baxter was a minimum wage worker at a convenience store when he met amelia. the two had a brief love affair resulting in the conception of trenton. an unwed cosmetologist in los angeles, amelia moved in with joshua and the two, soon to be three, of them were a "family". months before trenton was born his mother landed the job of a lifetime, as a makeup artist on the brady bunch. meanwhile joshua was stuck in his mediocre job and he began to resent amelia and by association their son. trenton found himself growing up on the brady bunch set, his father worked nights and amelia was sure she wasn't going to leave her son in the care of father, who was in the beginning stages of becoming an alcoholic and had a mean temper to boot.

in 1974 trenton and amelia were hit with two life changing events. the first was amelia's job on the brady bunch was coming to an end. the show ended in march of that year. the second event came in may. joshua baxtor was becoming involved in some shady business as he had been fired from the convenience store for being drunk on the job 95% of the time. amelia and trenton wouldn't see him for days on end and when they did he was either intoxicated or high. the small family was on the verge of breaking apart as neither amelia or joshua were brinig in any income to keep a roof over their heads. in a despair move joshua got roped into being the getaway driver for a bank heist. the security guard and one customer at the bank were shot during the heist. while his only role in the whole thing was getaway driver joshua was still sent to prison with a sentence of 15-25 years. amelia packed up her son and the two of them moved to georgia were amelia was originally from and her family still resided. it was the first time trenton was introduced to his grandma, who would later influence his creativity greatly.

trenton spent the rest of his childhood growing up in the theater. his grandma would take him to and from practices and rehearsals and help him learn all his lines. opening night was one of trenton's favorite parts of the theater, seeing the audience for the first time as they witnessed something they hadn't seen before. trenton grew up wishing more of his time come be spent on the stage rather than in a classroom. once he was done with high school trenton continued to work in the community theater. his mother pushed for college but trenton was dead set on making a life for himself within the theater. it was were his passion lied. the stage made him feel alive, like he could change the world. he progressed from just an actor in shows to writing and then directing his own plays. while there were bumps in the road, the first play trenton attempted to finance himself was considered to be a failure, trenton persisted on knowing one day he'd be rewarded for his hard work. that day came in 2005, a breakout year for trenton. his first major film, diary of a black woman was released. the main character of marbel "madea" simmons was loosely based on trenton's grandma and would become a recurring fixture in nearly all of trenton's films. not leaving the character up to just anyone's interpretation trenton has portrayed madea since her creation back in his theater days. after the success of diary of a mad black woman trenton continued to write, direct and produce his own films. in 2009 he collaborated with oprah to produce precious based on the book push by sapphire. the same year trenton had a cameo appearance in the film star trek, the only film to date he worked on that he did not write, direct or produce.

in 2008 trenton auditioned for a television pilot show. cbs was looking to capitalize on their ncis franchise by creating a spin off show. his agent had mentioned the role in passing and trenton went out for it on a whim. he never expected to land the role. despite his reservations trenton wanted to see if an audience would accept him in a role more dramatic than the films he had been writing and directing. in april 2009 the world was introduced to the series as trenton and his fellow castmates guest stared on ncis. the two part episode served as a back door pilot for the spin-off ncis: los angeles. that fall the series's first episode, "identity", aired garnering 18.73 million viewers. it was the second most watched show of the week, following its predecessor. cbs called it the number one new drama of 2010.
now in its second season, ncis: los angeles continues to be one of cbs's hit dramas and trenton couldn't be happier with the reception he's received for his portrayal of sam hanna, a far cry from the role of madea audiences first grew to love him in.

RANDOMNESS
• he has gotten a tattoo for every year that he has been successful in the film industry. he is currently plotting out the one for 2011. his grandma has never been a big fan of them, he doesn't mention them to her and when he sees her he's concerned enough to make sure they are covered.
• owns nearly 300 pairs of sunglasses. has an unhealthy addiction to them and continues to add to the collection.
• he has never been a big fan of the holiday halloween. being born on october 31 he rarely got to celebrate his birthday on his actual birthday, when he did talk his mom into having a party on that day it was always costumed themed and rarely any kids would show.
• he has not seen his father since he was four when his father was sent to prison. despite his father having been released for many years he refuses to have any contact with the man or acknowledge him. he has always professionally gone with his mother's last name and when he was eighteen legally changed it to severe any lasting ties to his father.
• is very reserved and seldom does any interviews. the press has a hard enough time trying to get a quote out of him during his premieres. he enjoys his privacy and would rather keep those closest to him out of the limelight. he doesn't feel the need to share everything in his life with the world.
• his sexuality is not something he usually talks about. the way he view it is that who he loves doesn't affect the films he creates so why should it affect the perception of the public. although most of the world assumes that he is in fact gay he has never actually confirmed or denied it.

CREDITS

stage;

I Know I've Been Changed (1998)
I Can Do Bad All by Myself (1999)
Diary of a Man Black Woman (2001)
Madea's Family Reunion (2001)
Madea's Class Reunion (2003)
Why Did I Get Married? (2004)
Meet the Browns (2004-2005)

film;

Diary of a Mad Black Woman (2005) ... Madea, Joe Simmons, Brian Simmons
Writer | Producer
Madea's Family Reunion (2006) ... Madea, Brian, Joe
Director | Writer | Producer
Daddy's Little Girls (2007)
Director | Writer | Producer
Why Did I Get Married? (2007) ... Terry Brock
Director | Writer | Producer
Meet the Browns (2008) ... Madea, Joe (cameo)
Director | Writer | Producer
The Family the Preys (2008) ... Ben
Director | Writer | Producer
Madea Goes to Jail (2009) ... Madea, Joe, Brian
Director | Writer | Producer
Star Trek (2009) ... Admiral Barnett
I Can Do Bad All by Myself (2009) ... Madea, Joe
Director | Writer | Producer
Precious (2009)
Producer
Why Did I Get Married Too? (2010) ... Terry Brock
Director | Writer | Producer
For Colored Girls (2010)
Director | Writer | Producer
Madea's Big Happy Family (2011) ... Madea
Director | Writer | Producer
We The Peeples (2011)
(post-production)
Producer
Good Deeds (2012) ... Glen Deeds
(filming)
Director | Writer | Producer
I, Alex Cross (2012) ... Dr. Alex Cross
(pre-production)

television;

NCIS: Naval Criminal Investigative Service (2009) ... Special Agent Sam Hanna
Legend: Part 1
Legend: Part 2
NCIS: Los Angeles (2009- ) ... Sam Hanna

AWARDS
BET Comedy Awards
•2005, Outstanding Actor in a Theatrical Film (Diary of a Mad Black Woman)
•2005, Outstanding Writing in a Theatrical Film (Diary of a Mad Black Woman)
Black Movie Awards
•2005, Outstanding Achievement in Screenwriting (Diary of a Mad Black Woman)
NAACP Image Awards
•2010, Chairman's Award
•2011, Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series (NCIS: Los Angeles)
•2011, Outstanding Directing in a Motion Picture (For Colored Girls)
•2011, Outstanding Motion Picture (For Colored Girls)


OOC
pst. third person. storybook. aim. customs.
pb: shemar moore